By Anthony Marcus, correspondent for Eurasia Business News, July 5, 2024. Article n°1072.
The Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban made a statement following talks in the Kremlin. The conversation between the two leaders preceded the statement lasted more than 2.5 hours.
Opening his speech, Vladimir Putin called the negotiations rich and recalled the cooperation between the Russian Federation and Hungary in the energy sector, medicine, and the pharmaceutical industry.
Putin called the exchange of views on international issues, including the Ukrainian conflict and its settlement, “thorough and honest.” According to Putin, Orban spoke about his talks in Kyiv.
The President of the Russian Federation once again stressed his commitment to a political and diplomatic resolution of the conflict, but the opposite side does not want to solve the problem in this way. Kyiv, according to Putin, is using its people as a battering ram to confront Russia. In Kyiv, they are not ready to abandon the conduct of hostilities “to the bitter end.” Also, Kiev does not want to abolish martial law and, accordingly, hold subsequent presidential elections. The chances of victory for the “Ukrainian rulers,” according to Putin, are “close to zero.”
During the joint statement Putin recalled his proposals for a peaceful settlement in Ukraine. According to him, this should not be just a truce or a pause that Kyiv could use, but a complete and final end to the conflict. We are talking about the complete withdrawal of all troops from the four new regions and other conditions that can become the subject of joint work.
The Russian president also spoke about a conversation with Viktor Orban on the state of relations with the European Union, which are “at the lowest point.” According to him, they talked about the future security architecture in Europe.
The President called the talks timely and expressed gratitude to Orban for visiting Moscow. The Russian Federation perceives this as an attempt to restore dialogue and give it an additional impetus.
Orban, in turn, noted the importance of the meeting at a time when Europe “needs peace.” According to him, the existence in the “shadow” of the conflict in Europe causes “enormous difficulties” – this affects economic growth and competitiveness.
“Over the past two and a half years, we have realized that without diplomacy, without channels of communication, we will not achieve peace. Peace will not come by itself, you need to work for it. It is the way to achieve peace that I discussed today with Mr. President,” Orban explained.
The Hungarian prime minister said that he “wanted to know what is the shortest path” to achieving peace, wanted to hear and heard Putin’s opinion on three issues: what he thinks about the current peace initiatives, what he thinks about the ceasefire and peace talks, in what sequence they can be held, as well as about the vision of Europe after the end of the conflict. Orban thanked Putin for an open and honest conversation.
Orban noted that the positions of Kyiv and Moscow are very far from each other and a lot of steps need to be taken in order to get closer to the end of the conflict.
“However, we have taken the most important step: we have established contact. And I will continue to work in this direction,” Orban concluded.
On July 5, it became known about Orban’s arrival in Moscow. According to him, this visit is a continuation of the peace mission. On July 2, the Hungarian Prime Minister visited Ukraine, where he asked President Volodymyr Zelensky to think about a ceasefire, as this would bring the start of negotiations with Russia closer. Kiev rejected the proposal. Orban reported that his visit to Kyiv is related to solving the problems facing the European Union.
At the opening of the meeting, Putin said that he intends to set out Moscow’s vision for a peaceful settlement in Ukraine and listen to his proposals. Orban, in response, recalled that the number of countries ready to talk to both sides of the conflict is “rapidly running out.” In his opinion, Hungary will soon become the only country in Europe that will be able to talk to everyone.
The European Union spokesman Eric Mamer said that Orban did not coordinate his trip to Russia with the European Commission, “his visit to Moscow undermines the unity of the European Union.”
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said that Viktor Orban’s decision to come to talks with Vladimir Putin was made by the Hungarian side without agreement or coordination with the country. The ministry clarified that they consider the “peace formula” of President Volodymyr Zelensky “the only realistic way to restore a just peace,” and the format of the “peace summit” is a key platform for finding ways to restore it.
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Although Hungary currently holds the presidency of the EU Council, its head Charles Michel said that the country does not have a mandate to interact with Russia on behalf of the association. The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, said that the EU excludes the possibility of official contacts with the Russian president.
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